The Guardian AND EVENING STAR, With which is incorporated “The West Coast Times.” FRIDAY, APRIL 1st, 1021. BE OF GOOD CHEER.

Hokitika Guardian, 1 April 1921, Page 2

The Guardian AND EVENING STAR, With which is incorporated “The West Coast Times.” FRIDAY, APRIL Ist, 1021. BE OF GOOD CHEER.

Thk present financial stringency created in the main in New Zealand by the drop in the demand —and necessarily the price—for our primary products is regarded in most quarters as a passing phase resultant from world conditions following the general stringency of the aftermath of the war. Professor Condliffe of Canterbury College a lecturer on economics, has been taking in an optimistic strain about, the I situation and lie takes the cheerful \i J ' v of things, and segards the general outlook as quite hopeful. The demand U) the Dominion's products next teal would be very much better than the demand this year. After th ( . boom period, the panic and the recovery, there runic ■> time ot oscillation together "dh ■, tendency "vet a considerable period for prices to fall. ‘1 don't take much account of this present crisis, which will pass away quickly.'' said Professor Condliffe. ; ‘Thc difficulty for us will be in the period when we have to face falling prices for. say ten years. After the Napoleonic wars prices fell for a much longer period than that. It would be foolish to deny that that was a serious position for New Zealand. As he had said earlier, the prosperity of the Dominion during the last twenty five years had been based on rising prices. Falling prices would produce a serious crop of difficulties. Reduction j n wages would be attempted', and workers would not take that without a struggle. Industrial trouble had resulted from the attempt in the Old Country, theiv would he a certain amount <.f unemployment. They should provide against it. and be prepared to meet it when it came. The rate of interest had not yet started to fall—in fact, it "a* rising fast. It would not fall until the scarcity of capital in the world was overcome. ' The world had been living above its income, and until income was increased, expenditure reduced and a margin of capital established, capital would be scarce and prices would fall. A borrowing country like New Zealand depended a. great deal upon the rate of interest and the position would he difficult. lit the iiext three years thirtynine millions of debt would have to 1 e renewed. ‘lt was going to he very difficult to get the money. That was the worst part of New Zealand s diffieultv, and was something that had to be faced. The Prime Minister would find his sources of revenue shrinking and the expenses going up. There would he only one way to get over the difficulty, and that was by' economy in the first place. Economy would have to he very strict, and somewhat ruthless. He did not expect taxation to faTl soon if New Zealand was to pay her way. Tn order to counteract the falling prices they must get greater production, and by that he did not mean pious exhortations to the working people to work .larder. “1 have no doubt that some of them could work harder, but 1 don’t believe that is the source of the greatest increase in production.” said Professor Condliffe. The best thing for New Zealand would be a policy of rural development- a policy of closer settlement of the land in suitable areas. He advocated the encouragement of the dairying industry, the one showing the greatest promise, and especially tlq, development through hydro-electric power. “I look forward to the time when Now

Zealand will be modelled largely, not « u America, with its congested centres and immigrant labour, ’’ said Professor . Condliffe. “hut on Denmark, with its ( rural democracy. That is tlie line of ! development I would like to see in New

i Zealand. Our towns will grow faster j than the country at the present time, i We must not repeat the mistakes made Iby one country after another since Britain went through the industrial re-volution.”-If the future was faced pro- ! perlv, it would furnish stimulus to greater production better organisation, i and the establishment of industries on a better basis.